Protesters can sue over busts

TWO BLACK LIVES MATTER activists can go ahead with their lawsuit against the Manhattan DA’s office and the NYPD over the police department handling their arrest cases, a judge ruled Thursday.

Arminta Jeffryes and Christina Winsor are trying to prevent NYPD lawyers from prosecuting them in criminal court.

The women face minor civil disobedience charges stemming from rallies.

Lawyers for Jeffryes and Winsor say the NYPD is overstepping its bounds to bully activists into making admissions in court that will protect the agency from future wrongful arrest claims.

The NYPD’s legal bureau has the authority to handle the low-level offenses in lieu of the Manhattan District Attorney as part of a “memorandum of understanding” issued by prosecutors in February 2016.

A judge on Thursday ruled that Jeffryes and Winsor can move forward with the lawsuit they filed in November 2016 — but did not block the NYPD from taking a prosecutorial role.

The police department has previously said the initiative had the goal of minimizing lawsuit liability and defending against false arrest claims.

In her decision Thursday, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Lucy Billings said that tactic wasn’t appropriate for the role of the prosecuting agency.

Lawyers for Jeffryes and Winsor, consider the jurist’s finding a victory.

“This decision calls into serious question the continued existence of the program,” attorney Martin Stolar said.

The women are due in Manhattan Criminal Court on Tuesday.